Airborne

The concept of transport is revolutionized with latest innovations. Last year, Airbus Group created a division named as Urban Air Mobility. The primary purpose of the division is to explore the possibilities of developing helicopter styled vehicles to carry passengers in urban cities. Similar to the current car sharing schemes, passengers can use a mobile app to book their seats on the self-piloted flying cars. This will greatly help to avoid the gridlock on the highly congested city roads. According to the chief executive of the group, the prototype for the vehicle will be ready by the end of 2017.

Airbus developed Project Vahana for testing autonomous vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL). The CEO of Airbus, Tom Enders said in a press conference that he is hoping to demonstrate airborne taxi carrying one person on self-flying air tax by this yearend. He said that the prototype is in the experimentation phase and they are taking it very seriously. He added that cautious measures are taken to ensure that the new technology doesn’t add further to the already polluted environment. This project can also help in reduction of infrastructure cost because air transport eliminates the need to build bridges and roads that cost several billion to the government.

Airbus is a leader in making commercial helicopters and it is testing new flying technologies including autonomous driving and using artificial intelligence. However, the spokesperson refused to reveal the amount of money invested in urban mobility program. The DLD tech conference in Munich excited the participants due to this announcement. The city designs and plans can change completely with the introduction of flying cars. The project Vahana sets out to determine the viability of urban aircraft vehicles useful in short haul trips before 2021. If this timeline is to be adhered to, prototype testing should be complete by this year end.

Previously, Airbus announced that it is hoping to complete a full-scale prototype in 2017. Even though no details are revealed about the aircraft taxi, there are many speculations. The airborne vehicle is supposed to use a four-rotor engine design. The vertical takeoff will be facilitated by variable positioning. To reduce the ecological impact, the aircraft will feature an electric motor. The ground-based transportation systems already in place pollute the environment by means of their emissions.

Flying cars have always amused the mankind and it was reserved for science fiction movies. Airbus believes that by ignoring the possibility of airborne taxis, the company won’t be able to keep up with the latest technology and innovations. The science fiction will be brought to life using advanced electric battery technology and pilot-free maneuvering system.

There is no guarantee that such a vehicle will be available for transport in the future, but the tech world is waiting for the release of the prototype. Airbus has numerous challenges in the future even if the prototype is successful because human air traffic is new and the helicopter maker must establish regulations and safety features.